HABITS OF THE GREAT PLOVER. 475 



into wild, wailing trills and twitterings that seem part of the 

 deepening gloom and sad sky ; for Nature's own sadness seems 

 to speak in the voice of these birds. These melancholy sounds 

 swell and subside and swell again as they are caught up and 

 repeated in different places, from one bird to another, and often 

 swell into a full chorus of several together. This note in its 

 entirety is only uttered by the bird whilst on the ground. That 

 uttered during flight is a simple wail like the ending of the 

 above. It is difficult to judge of the whereabouts of the birds 

 by their cry, and they often seem to be much nearer than they 

 really are. 



The dance-antics are varied with little flights over the ground, 

 if these may not rather be said to be a part of them. In one of 

 these the bird takes its departure, thus dancing off, as it were. 



Rain would seem, sometimes at least, to have an exhilarating 

 effect, causing the bird to come out from its cover into it,* and 

 begin the dance-antics earlier than it would otherwise have done. 



When thus leaving for the night, they rarely or never fly 

 silently, but utter the simple, short wail (short, that is, by 

 comparison). This is more particularly as they leave the 

 assembly-place, or are still near it. 



During the night they feed over the general surface of the 

 country, preferring, probably, the " fat," or cultivated lands. 



In the very early dawn they fly back to their assembly - 

 grounds, and this morning-flight is mostly in silence. Only 

 rarely is a wail uttered, but the ground-note is now sometimes 

 heard, though it is much less full and striking than in the 

 evening. The birds may very likely feed towards home, and 

 fly to it when at a certain distance. Some possibly may arrive 

 on foot.f 



Besides these two notes (the ground one and that of flight) 

 the Great Plover has a few others, the most pronounced of which 



;: The birds when thus seen by me stretched (once or twice, I think) the 

 wing up for the under part to get the rain, as does a Pigeon. I forgot to 

 note this down, and also that on another occasion rain seemed to have no 

 effect on them. But I was not there when it first came on, and could stay 

 only a short time. 



f My having heard the ground-note at early dawn, when the birds were 

 flying back, very near to (as far as I could judge), but not quite at, the place 

 of assembly, suggests this. 



•1 K 'I 



